BRAND-NEW
Airbus and University of Surrey Develop Coating to Protect Satellites Against Oxygen Damage A nano-level coating developed by Airbus and the University of Surrey can protect satellites in low-Earth orbit from ultraviolet radiation and atomic oxygen.
E
ngineers from Airbus Defence and Space and the Advanced
stack to overcome several issues previously reported in space, like
Technology Institute, a research centre of the University of Surrey,
coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch or surface undercutting
have developed a breakthrough nano-barrier and custom-built deposition
erosion, as a result providing a complete nano-barrier protection for
system that bonds to the surface of polymer or composite materials,
advanced polymeric and composite materials in LEO.
protecting them from the erosion caused by atomic oxygen, which is
By applying a combination of a buffer and highly-dense amorphous layers
created when O2 molecules break apart, a process made easier in space
the thermal cycling and intrinsic stress effects are reduced. This enables
because of the abundance of ultraviolet radiation.
moisture and outgassing protection in tandem creating a dimensionally
The new nano-barrier allows for large-area, conformal coating on complex
stable platform, and thereby preventing material degradation. Further
3D structures such as spacecraft and optical mirrors. This eliminates the
oxide nano-layers are used to both enhance atomic oxygen/UV protection
risk of contamination and the need to wrap instruments with multi-layer
and simultaneously improve thermo-optical properties of the substrates
insulation, opening up opportunities to increase satellite performance.
by controlling the optical band gap of the entire nano-barrier stack. This
“This breakthrough technology is an enabler for extremely agile, high
effectively facilitates radiative cooling by minimising the heat that could be
performance space borne radar missions. It should have a huge positive
built-up on the surface and degrade materials.
impact on overall mission performance by offering higher flexibility in
The new deposition system built by Airbus and Surrey’s Advanced
the acquisition as well as increasing the possible imaged area – giving
Technology Institute, ensures a complete conformal coverage of the
our instruments greater performance”, said Christopher Hess, Head of
nano-barrier at room temperature, so sensitive polymeric and composite
Microwave Instruments at Airbus Space Systems.
materials can be coated without approaching their glass transition temperatures.
How it works
The teams from Airbus and Surrey’s Advanced Technology Institute are
In a paper published by the scientific journal ACS Applied Materials &
now working on the next stage leading to industrialisation of the coating
Interfaces , engineers showed how they have constructed the multilayer
to enable the first LEO missions to be treated from 2022.
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https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsami.0c21552
© Airbus
For further information: www.airbus.com
